Coupe de la Ligue finalists Lyon offer glimpse of the future

As the Lyon players celebrated what turned out to be the winning goal over Paris Saint Germain in Sunday's Ligue 1 clash, it was startling to see goalscorer Jordan Ferri in the middle of the ruck, visibly appealing to his teammates for calm. The 22-year-old midfielder, whose curling shot had just put Lyon ahead after 31 minutes refused to get excited, perhaps already turning his mind to repelling the PSG attacks which inevitably followed. Lyon eventually held out for the win, and Ferri's stoicism neatly embodies the careful rebuilding project underway at Lyon, as Les Gones look to regain their dominance in French football.

Not getting carried away: Lyon's Jordan Ferri

Not armed with the staggering wealth of PSG or AS Monaco, Lyon owner Jean-Michel Aulas has recently sought to develop Lyon into a self-sustaining club which can once again claim domestic titles and compete in the latter stages of the Champions League, as l'OL did in the early 2000s. Central to this business plan is the opening of the club's eye catching new 58,000-seat stadium in the Decines suburb of the city, which will generate considerably more in match-day revenue than the current Stade de Gerland. The new Stade des Lumieres, which is set to host a number of matches in the next European Championships, is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2016.  

On the pitch, meanwhile, expensive foreign imports in the mould of Juninho, Lisandro Lopez and Michel Bastos have been eschewed in favour of graduates of a youth system which has already produced the likes of Karim Benzema and Loic Remy. Current manager Remi Garde, best known to English fans for an unspectacular spell at Arsenal in the early Wenger years, is beginning to enjoy success in blending Lyon's youngsters with established French internationals such as Yoann Gourcuff and Bafetimbi Gomis. After recovering from a poor start to the league season, Lyon currently sit fifth in Ligue 1's table, and can also look forward to meeting PSG again in Saturday's Coupe de la Ligue final.

Remi Garde's young squad are improving quickly

Garde's side have lost just three times in their last 18 league games, and although the chances of bridging the nine-point gap to third-placed Lille in the last Champions League place look slim with just five league games remaining, Lyon's good form bodes well for next season. Similarly encouraging are the performances of Lyon's next generation, with the likes of Clement Grenier, Maxime Gonalons and the aforementioned Ferri particularly impressive in a well-balanced midfield unit. Grenier, who was the subject of Newcastle's customary "couldn't quite get it over the line" interest in January, provides the creativity and precision set-pieces, whereas club captain Gonalons is an athletic enforcer who is equally comfortable sitting in front of the defence or pressing higher up the pitch. Ferri, meanwhile, is a diminutive but tenacious hustler with an eye for the spectacular.

In attack, 22-year-old striker Alexandre Lacazette has added composure to his searing pace in order to score 14 goals so far this season, drawing interest from the likes of Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur. Perhaps Lyon's most promising youngster, however, is at the other end of the pitch in the shape of 23-year-old goalkeeper Anthony Lopes. Lopes, who was born in France but has received call-ups for the Portuguese national team, made a string of fine saves in the narrow Europa League defeat to Juventus, as well as Sunday's win over PSG. It is equally impressive, meanwhile, that Lopes recalls former Lyon 'keeper Hugo Lloris in his ability to command the penalty area and sweep up any loose balls behind the defence.

Young goalkeeper Anthony Lopes impressed against Juventus

Lopes and his defence can expect to be tested when they face PSG in Paris' Stade de France this Saturday, particularly if PSG's talisman Zlatan Ibrahimovic recovers from a thigh injury in time to participate in the Coupe de la Ligue final. Ibrahimovic, who was absent in the recent defeats at Lyon and Chelsea, adds an extra dimension to PSG's already potent attack and has already claimed 40 goals in all competitions this season. Garde's Lyon, however, will look to attack in the hope that PSG's exit from the Champions League, coupled with Sunday's shock defeat at the Stade de Gerland, will have dented the French champions' previously unshakable confidence.

However this young Lyon team fare in Saturday's final, it is clear that Garde and Aulas are gradually building a team of home-grown players which may soon be able compete with the star-studded lineups of PSG and Monaco. Moreover, Lyon's new stadium reflects Aulas' desire to create a stable and sustainable football club where a successful team can be constructed in time. While the foreign owners of PSG and Monaco continue to marginalise their own young players in favour of talent brought into Ligue 1 by eye-watering transfer fees and wages, Lyon fans will be confident that their club's patient model of business may pay dividends in the long run.        

Supreme's "Cherry" - A REVIEW

Supreme is a brand which provokes strong reactions. Some people believe creator Bill Strobeck's company is one capable of liberating men's style from the flanneled, bearded "urban lumberjack" drudgery of the early 2010s. However, the brand has also begun to face accusations of selling out, particularly after gaining patronage from celebrities such as Rihanna, Odd Future and, more worryingly, Justin Bieber. Indeed, it often seems that Supreme's nine worldwide outlets now resemble little more than consumer battlegrounds between wealthy tourists and thirsty hypebeasts.

Shoppers queue for Supreme's London branch

"cherry", Supreme's first full-length skate video in its 20-year history, then, can be seen as an attempt to return to the company's roots. Supreme opened as a skate shop in Manhattan, New York City in 1994, and as Strobeck himself recently pointed out, "Supreme is still a store where people go to set up a board or get a bearing". The line-up of skateboarders featured in "cherry", however, is far more formidable than the usual shop squad, with the likes of Eric Koston, Alex Olson and Guy Mariano appearing alongside a new wave of insanely talented New York youngsters.

These young ams, namely Nakel Smith, Tyshawn Jones and Aidan Mackey, provide the video's most surprising section, in what must be the first ever Chief Keef-soundtracked part in a major skate film. The famous New York courthouse drop-off gap is handled in daring new ways, along with the usual array of handrails and ledges. Kevin Bradley, too, develops from the irritating Odd Future swag kid seen in Cliche's Bon Voyage into a sort of mini-Ishod Wair, all huge kickflips and kamikaze front crooks.

On sale now. YouTube availability to be confirmed.

While the almost daily technical progression of modern skateboarding means that these stunts may be bettered within a few months, Strobeck's artistic touch sees "cherry" distinguish itself the from the deluge of HD-filmed web footage through unique presentation. New York's hectic atmosphere seems to permeate throughout the film, with montages and shared sections usually preferred to strictly defined "parts" for named skaters. A wealth of lifestyle footage, ranging from interviews with models to practical jokes on crack smokers, is interspersed with the skateboarding too, often via surreal split screens. The soundtrack is similarly schizophrenic, lurching from The Cure and Raekwon to pan pipe solos.

The picture is largely shot in black and white, which recalls East Coast classics such as Dan Wolfe's Eastern Exposure 3. The video's most effective throwback, however, is the presence of Jason Dill and Anthony Van Engelen. Dill is Supreme's talisman, whether standing on street corners deriding "white people with dreadlocks", posing for fashion shoots with Chloe Sevigny, or spinning through another mind-bending manual combination. There's around three minutes of Dill footage here, and it is as captivating as ever. Van Engelen, meanwhile, remains about power and precision, with that all-time great switch 360 flip still going strong.

Dylan Reider and Bill Strobeck (photo by Jonathan Mehring)

AVE is a clear influence on his former Alien Workshop teammate Dylan Reider, who skates to INXS's 'Never Tear Us Apart' with fellow #teamgoodlooking co-captain Alex Olson. This section is low-impact skateboarding at its finest, as Olson and Reider attack New York spots with speed, style and no small amount of creativity. Forget about stair counts and appreciate the quickfire wallies and smooth smith grinds. Olson hastens his march into skateboarding folklore by fighting a man over a rail and earning membership of Snoop Dogg and A$AP Rocky's exclusive Men Who Can Pull Off Pigtails Club.

It is this mix of skateboarding excellence and aesthetic bravery with makes "cherry" so captivating. While the video has made me no more likely to spend £40 on a five-panel cap than before, Supreme's first full-length skate film is much more than an advertising ploy. It is a wonderfully disorientating celebration of urban youth, which needn't die out when you pass the age of 22. It is a vindication of style and expressionism which laughs in the face of staid conformity. Bill Strobeck might prefer it if you go shopping at Supreme after watching the video, but "cherry" has convinced me that that's not all his company cares about.

FIVE STARS              

More than Peerless Pirlo for England to Fear

With less than ninety days remaining until England begin their World Cup campaign against Italy in Manaus, Roy Hodgson is likely to have been encouraged by the performances of Liverpool's six English players on Sunday afternoon, as they dismantled Manchester United at Old Trafford. England captain Steven Gerrard converted two penalties, and youngsters such as Jon Flanagan and Raheem Sterling turned in assured performances in English football's bitterest derby.

Optimistic: Roy Hodgson 

However, Hodgson's optimism may have been dampened later that evening if the former Inter Milan manager took the time to look over results in Italy's Serie A. Along with Parma claiming an Antonio Cassano-inspired win over AC Milan, the most notable result came at Genoa's Stadio Luigi Ferraris, where Andrea Pirlo's 89th minute free-kick secured a 1-0 victory for Juventus over I Rossoblu. The win saw Juve go 14 points clear at the top of the table, and extend an unbeaten run which stretches back to October.

Pirlo, who so tormented England in their exit from Euro 2012, has been instrumental in Juventus' formidable domestic form. The 34-year-old playmaker has defied his advancing years to feature in 21 league games already this season, supplying four goals and four assists as Juve chase a third consecutive Scudetto. Pirlo remains equally important for Cesare Prandelli's national team, featuring in each of Italy's last three friendlies, and was shortlisted for the Golden Ball in last summer's Confederations Cup.

Pirlo may return to haunt England in Brazil

Hodgson will be particularly wary of Pirlo's ability to dictate the pace of play when England face the Azzurri in the sapping heat and humidity of Manaus, where June temperatures hover around 30 Celsius. Even in milder temperatures, Pirlo's sharp movement and deft first touch make him hard to close down, as James Milner and Scott Parker learned in 2012. What little pace Pirlo possessed in his youth has gone, but the veteran midfielder's game has never relied on athleticism, and his eye for a pass remains as keen as ever. The former AC Milan star remains a menace from dead ball situations, too, with all of his goals this season coming from direct free-kicks.

Five days after their opening clash with Italy, England's second game in Group D will see them take on Uruguay in Sao Paulo. While Luis Suarez's goalscoring exploits are well known to fans of the Premier League, his strike partner Edinson Cavani is also a serious threat to England's backline. Cavani, who has already plundered 21 goals in 33 games for Paris St Germain this season, is a tireless runner who will be content to play second fiddle to Suarez. Uruguay manager Oscar Tabarez called Cavani "the perfect son-in-law", and the forward's honest work rate makes him a perfect foil for the more flamboyant talents of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Suarez at club and international level respectively.

Uruguay's Diego Godin has excelled for Atletico Madrid

Uruguay's defence, meanwhile, will be marshalled by 28-year-old centre back Diego Godin, who is enjoying an excellent season at Atletico Madrid. As well as a place in the Champions League quarter-finals, Atletico have the meanest defence in La Liga, and Godin has the pace necessary to cover for aging Uruguay captain Diego Lugano, who has been in indifferent form since joining West Bromwich Albion last summer.

Costa Rica, who England face on 24 June, appear the least threatening team in Group D, but England should guard against any complacency in their final group game. Joel Campbell, the striker on loan from Arsenal to Olympiakos, scored against Manchester United in the Champions League, and has the pace and flair to cause problems for England's defence. Bryan Ruiz, the mercurial Fulham forward currently on loan to PSV Eindhoven, is also finding form back in the Eredivisie, with three goals in his first eight games.

Keylor Navas makes another save

As anyone who witnessed England's demoralising 0-0 draw with Algeria in the 2010 World Cup will attest, even draws against lowly opposition can feel like a defeat, and Costa Rica goalkeeper Keylor Navas could be the man to ensure a stalemate. Nobody has made more saves in La Liga this season than Navas, who plies his trade at Levante and has been linked to both Arsenal and Liverpool. He was particularly impressive against Barcelona in January, as Levante held the reigning Spanish champions to a 1-1 draw.

Considering the talents of these individuals, then, it may be best for Roy Hodgson and his squad to temper their optimism ahead of the World Cup. While Liverpool's youngsters, along with the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Luke Shaw may inspire whispers of a golden generation, England supporters should realise that qualification from Group D will be an impressive feat in itself.                

Eagulls - EAGULLS (album review)

Leeds post-punk fivesome Eagulls proved in January 2013 that they aren't here for a good time, when they published their now-infamous open letter decrying the raft of "beach bands" who were "rubbing the press' clits" that winter. Their debut album, released last week on the aptly-named Partisan Records, will determine whether they'll be here for a long time.

Thankfully for frontman George Mitchell and his cohorts, their self-titled debut packs enough memorable hooks and choruses in to ten tracks to sustain interest in the band's bleak subject matter. Songs about heroin ('Amber Veins') and thalidomide poisoning ('Tough Luck') match their lyrical content with hypodermic-sharp riffs and a furious rhythm section. Opening track and lead single 'Nerve Endings', meanwhile, builds an acute sense of dread as Mitchell recounts a panic attack over effects-laden guitars. Eagulls covered Killing Joke's 'Requiem' as a B-side to 'Nerve Endings' and their influence can be heard throughout the album, as Eagulls construct a visceral, gritty sound befitting their post-industrial hometown. 

The album's artwork features a burnt out car on a council estate, and the songs within evoke the frustrations of 20-somethings toiling far from Britain's metropolitan "recovery", particularly on the embittered 'Soulless Youth'. It's the sound of a betting slip in your right hand and a Sam Smith's ale in the left, as opposed to an iPhone and a Starbucks latte. Mitchell himself has admitted in previous interviews that he sings as "an outlet... a primal scream", and this is most apparent on the outstanding 'Possessed', as he bellows "I don't want to know you / Because I'm something else".

For all the band's impressive energy and technical ability, however, there are occasional moments when Eagulls' eponymous effort can feel like a chore. 'Fester / Blister', in particular, is a charmless track which falls short in aiming for the chaos of American hardcore bands such as Suicidal Tendencies, instead sounding more akin to a punch-up at a youth club. Indeed, while the high proportion of new tracks on the album can be commended, surely fantastic early singles such as 'Council Flat Blues' are worthy of inclusion.

Despite these flaws, Eagulls have backed up their abrasive image with an accomplished debut record, which hints at much more to follow. Mitchell may sing of gloom and despair, but the dynamism of his band ensures that their debut album is oddly euphoric. Self-degradation has rarely sounded so fun.

FOUR STARS                

Solar Tags Reveal Divorce of Seagull Romeo and Juliet

My article on the new techniques being used to track seabirds can be found via The Sunday Times website (subscription required).

'Is Your Pet Happy? Just Ask and It Will Tell.'

Myself and Jonathan Leake's interview with Scottish animal welfare expert Professor Ian Duncan can be found on The Sunday Times website (subscription required).

The Sound and Fury of HBO's True Detective

In the midst of the hostage situation that provides True Detective's most intense scene so far, a neo-Nazi meth cook mumbles that "time is a flat circle". This line is repeated throughout the fifth episode of HBO's new eight-part drama series: an oblique, possibly meaningless allusion in a television show full of them. Whether these references prove to be vital in resolving True Detective's original murder mystery seems almost besides the point, as these scattered philosophies and half-truths combine to contribute a mythic and menacing undertone to the outstanding new series.

Detectives Hart (Woody Harrelson) and Cohle (Matthew McConaughey)

True Detective is a show which is founded upon uncertainties, with the plot unfolding across two timelines and with unreliable narrators. Former Louisiana State Police Detectives Rustin "Rust" Cohle and Martin Hart recount a 1995 murder investigation to two younger police officers in the present day, who seem just as interested in their predecessors as the murder investigation. Just as in shows such as Twin Peaks and The Killing, the murder mystery itself often feels secondary to the study of the central characters. Indeed, the string of murders depicted throughout the series frequently seem to be the pretext creator and writer Nic Pizzolatto needs to examine the morality of Cohle, Hart and of the Deep South itself.

The Louisiana presented in True Detective is a poverty-riven wasteland of swamps and trailer parks, populated by an assortment of right-wing biker gangs, prostitutes, and evangelical Christians. Detective Cohle, himself a Texan, spits that his and Hart's new beat is more like "someone's memory of a town, and the memory is fading". The two detectives spend much of the early episodes tramping through swamps, abandoned schools, and dilapidated churches as they search for leads in their investigation into a murder with occult overtones. In these opening episodes, the wretched Louisiana landscape builds an eerie tone which is reinforced by a number of literary references.

True Detective's desolate Louisiana landscape

Pizzolatto, who convinced HBO to forego a team of writers and grant him full creative control over the series, is himself a Louisiana native who was previously an assistant professor of literature at DePauw University, so is sure to be familiar with the Southern Gothic tradition. This literary tradition, which birthed the likes of Flannery O'Connor and Cormac McCarthy, is soon brought to mind by the string of grizzly roadside murders depicted throughout the series. The serial killer pursued by Cohle and Hart, meanwhile, is frequently referred to as "The Yellow King". It has been noted that this may refer to The King in Yellow, Robert W Chambers' 1895 short story collection which comprises a number of stories featuring a meta-fictional play of the same name: a play that kills anyone who views it. Furthermore, the stories in Chambers' collection are all set in the cursed city of Carcosa, which bears resemblance to the miserable Louisiana portrayed in the series. The parallels between Chambers' Carcosa and True Detective's Louisiana are made explicit when one murder suspect warns the detectives "you're in Carcosa now, the black star is rising".
       

Reggie Ledoux (left) speaks of Carcosa in episode five

This sense of impending doom is developed further by the series' undoubted star, Matthew McConaughey, who turns in a performance of taciturn brilliance as the nihilistic Detective Cohle. McConaughey, who has enjoyed a mid-career renaissance playing Southern oddballs, brings a glazed-eyed intensity to Cohle, the maverick former undercover narcotics agent transferred to the State Police's homicide team. Cohle, although a genial investigator, engulfs his colleagues in an existential despair as he observes that humans "labor under the illusion of having a self". It is testament to the calibre of McConaughey's performance that Cohle's philosophising and his various contradictions - his meticulous note-taking sees him nicknamed "taxman" but he is also an alcoholic - never undermine the character's credibility.

His partner, Woody Harrelson's Detective Hart, at first seems to function as light relief from Cohle, in one instance warning his colleague that "the car is to be a place of silent reflection", after another of Cohle's misanthropic rants. However, while Hart seems like the stable family man to Cohle's hateful bachelor at the outset, the cracks in his facade are gradually revealed throughout the series. Harrelson is excellent as the patriarch trying to keep a lid on his wildest desires, once growling "I'm not a psycho" through gritted teeth, having just thrown someone through a wardrobe. Harrelson has great on-screen chemistry with McConaughey, and it makes for captivating viewing as the egos of their respective characters clash and occasionally co-operate throughout the investigation.

McConaughey's Cohle makes for an unreliable narrator as he recounts the investigation

Along with excellent performances from the cast, with Michelle Monaghan meriting a mention for her portrayal of Hart's wife, True Detective also includes a number of stunning action sequences. The six-minute, one-take chase through a neighbourhood engulfed in a gang shoot-out which concludes the fourth episode has already earned deserved plaudits. The scene, filmed in one continuous tracking shot and soundtracked by Wu-Tang Clan and police helicopters, arrives as a exhilarating surprise in a series which until that point develops slowly. The "big throw-down in the woods", meanwhile, which is discussed from the first episode, is even richer in tension and shocks. These set-pieces, cinematic in their scope and intensity, allow the series to take on a tone akin to Training Day re-written by William Faulkner.

The show's impressive pacing, meanwhile, can be attributed to the fact that True Detective will be broadcast in an anthology format, with each series set to feature a new cast and storyline. As such, viewers will be spared the meandering progress of interminable modern-day TV epics such as Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead, whereby shows inevitably lose momentum after a brilliant first series. This eight-episode format is double-edged, however, as viewers of True Detective will be forgiven for not wanting the final three episodes of this captivating new drama to end.